Lime Rock Park ‘Selling’ Trees With “Planting for the future” project, track invites fan involvement
The number 55. It has a lot of meaning around Lime Rock Park. It was 55 years ago – Saturday, April 27, 1957 – that Lime Rock Park embarked on what would become a tradition of beauty and speed; Ted Sprigg, driving an Alfa Romeo Giulietta, won Lime Rock Park’s very first race. But now the track is announcing the start of a project that involves a different kind of “sprig.” The kind one finds on a tree in the spring ...
... At Lime Rock Park there are no grandstands, no bleachers, no imposing monoliths. It’s a park, with grass and hillsides and streams and shrubbery and wildlife.
And trees.
Owner Skip Barber wants to make sure it stays this way for at least another 55 years, so he’s given the green light to Lime Rock Park’s Planting for the Future: 55 Trees.
In short, Lime Rock Park’s goal is to plant 55 trees on the property in 2012 – not only to commemorate Lime Rock Park’s 55th birthday, but also in support of an obligation to eco-excellence. As part of the project, the track’s fans are being given an opportunity to purchase the planting of a tree at Lime Rock Park in their name. There are a variety of tree- and location options (click to see the “tree map”), the trees to be planted will range from 2 to 4 inches in trunk-width and the starting heights will be 5 to 11 feet. The trees reach functional maturity in 5 to 6 years.
Planting for the Future: 55 Trees
Lime Rock Park has retained two certified and licensed arborists – Arbor Services of Connecticut, in Washington Depot, Conn., and ArborWorks, from East Hartland, Conn. – who’ve mapped out specific locations and tree types for optimum sustainability and beauty. This mapping includes the Infield and Outfield Spectator Hillsides, as the track’s fans have let it be known they would welcome access to additional shaded viewing areas. Already committed to the project is a Home Depot located in Bristol, Conn., as well as New England-based Viridian Energy, both of which will help with manpower and support products.
The cost to “buy” a tree, which includes a high quality, permanently installed commemorative plaque installed next to the tree in the name of the donor’s choosing, is $1,000. (People may also choose to donate any dollar amount toward the project.) Everyone will be recognized on the Planting for the Future: 55 Trees Fundraising Board, which will be prominently displayed on the Lime Rock Park property. One-hundred percent of any fundraising money goes to the purchasing, planting and maintenance of the trees. More information can be found at www.55trees.com.
